BRAZIL - POWER AND REALISM

by Joaquin Roy
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Inter Press Service

It is said that a French politician, asked whether Brazil had a good future, answered with scorn and knowing irony, "Brazil has always had, still has, and will always have a magnificent future." It would seem that the country has suffered for decades under this sort of stigma, writes Joaquin Roy, ''Jean Monnet'' professor and Director of the European Union Centre of the University of Miami.

In this analysis, the author writes that if it is true that the US can intervene, with varying success, in any situation, especially emergencies, it is uncertain whether it could be successful without the collaboration of partners that are both effective and trustworthy. Brazil has come to occupy this position.

In Latin America, Brazil is an inescapable point of reference -the opposite of Venezuela, which deliberately stirs up distrust around the world, though it is concealed for tactical reasons. As the rest of Latin America finds itself in the grip of reelection fever, President Lula, with an enviable public approval rating, will not follow or consider following that dangerous path. And largely as a result of his reasonable approach, Brazil is not only a country with a great future: it is a colossus that can be counted on.

(*) Joaquin Roy is ''Jean Monnet'' professor and Director of the European Union Centre of the University of Miami (jroy@Miami.edu).

//NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN CANADA, CZECH REPUBLIC, IRELAND, POLAND, THE UNITED STATES, AND THE UNITED KINGDOM//

BRAZIL - POWER AND REALISM

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